


Woodhaven

by thatwriterlady



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alpha Dean, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Emotional Comfort, F/M, Family, Fluff, Happy Ending, Healing, Like Witness Protection, Love, M/M, Mating, Omega Benny, Omega Castiel, Omega Charlie, Past Dean and Benny, Past Rape/Non-con, Past Sexual Abuse, Past Torture, Protective Dean Winchester, Pups, Rescue, Satisfying Ending, Thriller, Town United
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-23
Updated: 2017-09-23
Packaged: 2019-01-04 07:45:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 16,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12164553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatwriterlady/pseuds/thatwriterlady
Summary: After barely escaping his mother's cult with his life, Cas gets pulled over just outside a quiet little town in Kansas.  He expects to be arrested, to be sent back to the hell he'd just managed to get away from, but instead, he finds help in in the form of a handsome police officer named Dean, a bubbly nurse/computer whiz named Charlie, a slick technological genius named Ash, and many other members of the quiet town of Woodhaven.  See, Cas isn't the first person to arrive there seeking refuge, and he is welcomed with open arms.  When the people from the cult come looking for Cas, they underestimate the people of Woodhaven.  You see, they take care of their own, and Cas?  He's one of theirs now.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> *************TRIGGER WARNING*******************
> 
> You all had better read this, cause I have a migraine a mile wide and I don't want to field comments about how people were "triggered" by this story. THIS IS YOUR WARNING!
> 
> There is mention of the abuse and torture Cas escapes from. No, he will not go into detail with anyone about what he went through, mostly because he was drugged during it, but also because his psyche blocked out the trauma, as so often happens with extreme trauma. This story DOES NOT FOCUS ON THE TRAUMA. It focuses on Dean finding him AFTERWARDS, getting him the help he needs, and helping him to settle in the town.
> 
> I hope that sets things straight. Aside from that, I hope everyone that does read this has read the tags and realizes there IS NO RAPE IN THIS STORY. EVERYTHING IS PAST TRAUMA. And I hope you enjoy the story. I'm going now to nurse my migraine. The meds seem to be taking my migraines down from a level 10 every day to between a level 5 to a level 8 every day. Today's has been fluctuating between a 4 and a 7, but it's a bad tremor day. I just want to go lay down with an ice pack. Monday I go for my MRI/MRV. I'm hoping they find something. Alright, go on, read this, I look forward to seeing how you all like it because I really love this one.

 

 

**Chapter 1~**

 

Cas felt his heart leap into his throat when he saw the lights come on behind him.  The cop car had been following him for a good two miles at least, and now the lights were on.  He waited a beat to see if the car was going to go around him, and when it didn’t he let out a frustrated whine and pulled over to the side of the road.  He was positive he hadn’t broken any laws.  His license was current, but the car did not belong to him.  It was within reason that this was a random stop, which police were entitled to do, in which case there was not a specific reason to pull him over.  He fished out his license and reached into the glove box for the registration, then sat waiting for the officer to walk up to his car. Had the car already been reported as stolen?  That was possible.  He hoped it wasn’t though. 

 

He watched in the side view mirror as the police officer got out of his car and made his way over.  His window was already down so he didn’t have to do much more than sit there staring forward.  As long as he didn’t look up, hopefully the officer wouldn’t notice anything out of place.

 

“Did I do something wrong, officer?”

 

“No, not at all.  I just wanted to let you know that one of your brake lights is out,”  Officer Winchester, as his nametag stated when he glanced up at it, replied.  Cas frowned, careful to keep his head down so the officer didn’t get a good look at the damage to his face.

 

“Oh, I will get that fixed as soon as I can; thank you for letting me know.  Am I free to go?”

 

“Sure, but I could fix it for you right now, if you like.  I have a mechanic’s license.”

 

Cas debated.  What if he got pulled over again later for the same reason?  Another officer might not be so kind, and he didn’t have the money for a mechanic to fix it, nor would he be able to pay to fix a car he had technically stolen.  This was his best bet.  Let the cop fix it, then get as far as the money in his pocket could take him. Then lay low and hope they didn’t find him.

 

“O-ok that would be much appreciated.”

 

His entire body hurt horribly, and he was still in the tail end of his heat, which wasn’t making things any better.  Officer Winchester backed up as he opened the door and it took great effort to swing his legs out and actually stand up.  The friendly smile on the man’s face disappeared so fast Cas almost believed it hadn’t been there at all.

 

“Hey, what happened?  And don’t tell me you’re ok, because you’re clearly not.  You need medical assistance.”

 

“No, please!”  Cas grabbed for the officer’s hand when he reached for the mike on his chest, stopping him from calling for an ambulance.  “If you call anyone they’ll find me!”

 

“Who?  Who will find you?”

 

Tears welled up in the Omega’s eyes as he broke down.  He flinched as warm, strong arms came around him, but he felt safer than he had in months, and he melted into the embrace.

 

“I can’t go back, they’ll…I can’t!”

 

“Shh, no one’s taking you anywhere, ok?  What’s your name?”

 

Cas thought for a moment.  If he gave this cop his name, they might track down someone from his past, the people he was trying so desperately to escape, but by law, they couldn’t force him to go back.  That wouldn’t stop them though.  They’d take him by force.  He shuddered and the arms around him held him tighter.

 

“I’m not reporting you to anyone, or giving your name to anyone.  It’s for me.  I’d like to know your name.”

 

“C-Cas.  M-my name is Cas.”

 

“Well, Cas, I’m Dean.  Whatever you’re running from, it can’t get you here, I promise.”

 

“You can’t promise me that.  They’ll find me; they’ll take me back!”

 

Dean’s arms tightened even more around him, and for the first time in more than six months, he actually felt safe.

 

“No one is going to find you.  Is this your car?”

 

“No, I had to take it to get away.  They…had me locked in the basement.  I stole the first set of keys I could find and I got the hell out of there.  I know I broke the law…”

 

Dean pulled back and took a good look at him.  Cas knew he looked bad.  His lower lip was split and he had a black eye, and that was only what was visible.  He’d been starved and his body was covered in cuts and bruises.  Then there were the ligature marks on his wrists and ankles.  He pulled the edges of his sweater down to cover them but Dean caught the motion and grabbed his hand.  Meeting the Omega’s eye, he pulled the edge of the sleeve up.  A low growl escaped the Alpha’s throat when he saw the angry, raw lacerations, some of which were still bleeding.

 

“Jesus, Cas,”

 

“You have no idea,”  Cas said bitterly.

 

“Well, I can arrange for the car to be ditched.  Far, far away from here, and I can get you very discreet medical care.  You don’t have to go to a hospital.  You’re safe here, I promise.”  Dean smoothed back a lock of hair from Cas’ forehead, grimacing when he made the Omega wince.  There was a gash above his eyebrow and his hair had become matted in the blood.  “Whoever did this, they’re never touching you again.”

 

“You can’t promise me that.  You don’t even know me,”  Cas argued.

 

“I’m the law, I _can_ make that promise.  But you’re not the first person that sought sanctuary here.  We keep people safe here, and we’ll keep you safe.”  Dean wrapped an arm around his shoulders as he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket.  Cas watched with wide frightened eyes as the Alpha placed the call that would change his life.

 

“Ash?  Yeah, I need you to meet me out on highway six.  Right now.  I have a car I need you to make disappear.”

 

 

Cas was nervous, expecting to be put in the back of the police car and driven to the station but instead he was put in the passenger seat and driven to a quaint little house in a quiet neighborhood.  Dean came around to open the door for him and even helped him out.

 

“Thank you, I-I’m in a lot of pain right now.”  He hated admitting that.

 

“I can tell. Maybe one day you’ll feel strong enough to tell me what happened.  If not, that’s fine.  You’ve got friends no matter what.”  Dean smiled softly, reassuringly, and Cas surprised himself by smiling back.  These last few months he hadn’t found an Alpha he could trust, and he was wary, but Dean didn’t make him feel any sort of sense of alarm, and he hadn’t arrested him or even asked his last name.  And, as promised, they were not at the hospital.

 

“Where are we?”

 

“Another survivor.  Her name is Charlie.  She’s a nurse, but she’s also a tech wiz.  She’ll get you fixed up and give you a safe place to stay.  You’re safe, Cas.  I can’t begin to emphasize that enough.  I have a question though.  What’s your middle name?”

 

“Oh, it’s James,”  Cas replied.

 

Dean guided him up the stairs and rang the bell.  They waited and a few minutes later the door opened revealing wide, hazel green eyes and a head of fiery red hair.

 

“Dean?”

 

“Hey, Red.  I need your help.  Jimmy here needs urgent care.”  Dean said.  She threw the door open wide and motioned them both inside.

 

“You’re in heat,” she stated as she closed the door behind them.

 

“It’s almost over.”  Cas was feeling it now that his adrenalin was draining.  He sagged against Dean, and all of the pain he’d been able to ignore came rushing back.  Before his legs could give out, the Alpha scooped him up and cradled him to his chest.

 

“Where do you want him?”  Dean asked.

 

“In here.  I have an exam room in here.”  She led the way through a small living room and into a room that probably had once been a den. It had since been turned into a rather updated medical examination room. Dean laid Cas down on the exam table, and Charlie elevated it so he was sitting up more.

 

“Are we keeping this discreet?”  she asked, directing the question to Dean.

 

“Yes.  If he needs serious medical care, call me and I’ll speak to Bobby directly.  I can get him to be discreet and keep things off hospital records.”

 

She nodded.  “Alright.  Get back out there, before Jody or the others get suspicious.”

 

He looked one last time at Cas, who was lying back, an expression of misery on his face and his eyes squeezed shut in pain, before heading for the door.

 

“Call me later,” he told her.  She nodded.  A moment later the outer door opened and closed.  She turned her attention to Cas.

 

“Your name’s not really Jimmy, is it.”

 

He shook his head.

 

“Doesn’t matter.  You’re safer from whoever’s after you if no one here knows your real name.  My name’s not really Charlie, but I like my new name, and I like the person I am now.  I wasn’t in a good place back then.  We’ll get you fixed up and on the road to healing.”  Cas smiled weakly up at her.  He had only expected to pass through this town as he tried to put as much distance as possible between himself and the hell he’d finally managed to escape.  This wasn’t where he’d expected to find the help he would need.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2~**

 

Dean worried.  He couldn’t help it.  Ash met him back at the car, and after he’d pulled anything he thought Cas might need from it, he’d given Ash license to drive the car two states over and dump it in the swamp.  No one would find it there. He paid for a plane ticket back for the man, and then the waiting game began.  It was two full days before Charlie called with an update, and he practically lunged at his phone when she did.

 

“Char!  Is he going to be ok?”

 

“Who, Jimmy?”  She asked.

 

“Who else?”  He wasn’t in the mood for her games. 

 

“He’s been through the wringer.  Escaped a cult where they thought he was going to bear the next messiah.  He didn’t tell me everything they did, but I’m pretty sure they tied him down to one of those mating tables.  His wrists and ankles are all torn up, and they were pretty infected.  And that was the easy part.  He’s still on fluids, and I’m feeding him well, trying to put some weight on him.  His heat’s over and I put him on some pain meds, so he’s feeling a lot better.  He has a long recovery ahead of him.”  She sighed deeply.  With how softly she was speaking, he knew she didn’t want Cas overhearing.

 

“Who the hell does that kind of stuff?  I’ve been watching but the car hasn’t been reported stolen as far as I can tell.  He got, like, six states away.  Those were Connecticut plates.  Hopefully the cult is small and they don’t track him down,”  Dean was absolutely horrified over everything Cas had endured.

 

“That’s not the worst part,”  Charlie said.

 

“There’s something worse?” 

 

“That cult?  It’s the Morning Star cult, and it’s run by his _mother_.”

 

Dean sat back hard against his couch seat, too numb with shock to react.  Charlie sighed in his ear.

 

“Yeah, that was my reaction too.  His name’s not Jimmy, it’s Castiel James Novak, son of Naomi Novak, the nutcase running the largest and most insane cult in the country.  She has people _everywhere_.  I’m not telling anyone his real name though.  As far as anyone is concerned, his name is Jimmy.  He’s terrified because he doesn’t think he’ll be able to ever escape her.  She decided her own son was the vessel of the Lord, and he would usher in the new messiah, so his last heat?  She literally had him kidnapped from his own house, dragged down to their commune basement, and tied to one of those archaic mating racks, like they used in ancient civilizations when kings couldn’t produce enough viable heirs, so they’d essentially rape unwilling Omegas that went into heat.  They did that to him.  Dozens of Alphas, Dean.  Possibly even more than that.  He was drugged and unconscious most of the time and doesn’t remember most of it.  I’m glad for that.  Every night they’d take him off the rack and toss him in a room with a cot and a toilet, like a prison cell.  One night they forgot to lock the door, and he escaped.  He was drugged up still, and almost crashed, but he stole the first car he could fit the keys into and got as far away as he could before he dared to stop and try to sleep.  He stopped back at his place though, and grabbed some clothes and his money, but he left everything else behind.  Dean, he’s a mess, emotionally, physically, and if they find him…”

 

“They’re not,”  Dean said firmly.  “And if they do, they’re not touching him.  By law they can’t, and this entire town will protect him.  We don’t let crazies in.  He’s safe here.”

 

“I had to call Bobby.  You were out on a call and I couldn’t reach you, but he came, and he was discreet.  Jimmy needed some stitches, and it was urgent.  Bobby said I made the right call because there was some internal bleeding.  He said he’d call you tonight.  He’s on a rotation, but he said he’d find time to call you.”

 

Dean sighed.  “Bobby knows?”

 

“He’s furious, but not at you.  He says you made the right call. If you’d taken him up to the hospital, he’d be traceable and someone would have shown up to try and drag him back.  Said he’d protect Jimmy with his life before he’d let anyone hurt him again.  He was in tears.  I’ve never seen him cry before.  It was scary.”

 

“He has a safe place here.  There’s no reason to ever run again.  We’ll do everything in our power to make sure they don’t find him here,”  Dean said.  “You just keep him resting and on the path to healing.”

 

“I plan on it.  Right now, he’s watching Doctor Sexy.”  She chuckled.  “I think I might have created a monster.”

 

“He has good taste!”  Dean exclaimed, grinning.

 

“Oh, God, no, you’re just as bad!”  She laughed.  Movement on her end of the line told him Cas was calling for her.  “I gotta go; Jimmy needs to use the bathroom, and I have him hooked up to IVs.  I’ll talk to you later.”

 

“Later, Red.”  

 

They hung up and he turned on his own television, bypassing the Doctor Sexy marathon and turning to the evangelical station.  There was a sermon being given by Reverend Naomi Novak, leader of the “Church of the Morning Star,” better known as the “Morning Star Cult” by those that were actually sane.  Sane people knew Naomi Novak was batshit crazy, but there were crazies all over the world that believed in her sermons, no matter how out there they were.  She was an Alpha who was clearly off her rocker, enough so that she thought it was perfectly ok to call for the kidnapping and assault of her own son. 

 

He watched a good ten minutes of it before he had to turn it off.  The things she spewed, they were ridiculous, talking about the rapture, and how it was coming in the next year, and that the second coming of Christ was going to signal the start of it.  Clearly someone wasn’t reading her Bible in the proper order.  He really hoped she didn’t target some other innocent young kid and do to them what she’d done to Cas.  Someone needed to put a stop to that woman, and soon.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3~**

It was over a month later before Dean saw Cas again, and it was in a very unexpected place. He knew the Omega had stayed in town with the promise that he would be safe, and that had made him happy, but then he hadn’t seen him at all for quite a while.  Stopping in for his morning coffee one Tuesday, he saw a familiar face behind the counter.

 

“Hey, Jimmy!  Gabe gave you a job, eh?”

 

Cas’ smile was soft and shy as he looked up at the Alpha.  “Yes, he’s been very kind to me.  I appreciate this opportunity very much.”

 

“Jimmy here was in college to be a teacher.  I think we can make that happen again, don’t you?”  Gabe asked as he leaned an elbow on the counter.

 

“I can talk to a couple people.”  Dean knew they’d have to arrange for fake identification first, but they could get Cas enrolled in school.  Right now Gabe had probably hired him at Charlie’s recommendation, and was probably paying him entirely under the table.  Woodhaven had a way of doing business that was a little outside the books, but they tended to take care of their own.  Cas just fit in here.  He was already becoming family.

 

“What can I getcha?”  Gabe asked.

 

“Oh, the usual, I think.  Or you know what?  Winter’s really starting to settle in, so give me something with caramel,”  Dean replied.  Gabe nodded.

 

“You got it.  Apple fritter or Cherry tart?”

 

“Mmmm….one of each?”

 

Gabe laughed as he rang him up, then got the pastries out of the case.  Cas was busy making the coffee. 

 

“So, you going to the winter social?”  Gabe asked as he set the bag of pastries on the counter.

 

“I go every year,”  Dean replied, his eyes drifting over to where Cas was carefully drizzling caramel syrup over the top of his coffee.

 

“Got a date this year?”

 

“No, I do not, and I’m not taking you,”  Dean said, grinning.  Gabe barked out a laugh and shook his head.

 

“Like Kali would let me go with anyone but her.  No, I was just curious if you were taking anyone or not.”

 

“Here you go, Officer Winchester.”  Cas set the cup of coffee down in front of him and offered another shy smile.  Dean smiled right back.

 

“You don’t have to call me that. I told you, call me Dean.”

 

A sweet blush rose up on Cas’ cheeks as he nodded.  “Alright, I-I will.”  He disappeared into the back, leaving Dean standing there with Gabe.

 

“He’s a sweet kid.  Been to hell and back, but we watch over our own here,”  Gabe said. 

 

“Yes we do.  Hey, I gotta run, but we’ll talk later, ok?”

 

Gabe waved as Dean grabbed his food and coffee before jetting out the door.  When he turned around he noticed Cas peeking out from the kitchen door, watching the Alpha as he got into his patrol car.  Well wasn’t _that_ interesting…

 

 

 

The winter social was old fashioned but it was a well-loved town tradition, and Dean had gone every year since he was 13, which was the allowed age.  It was a chance for everyone to socialize, to chat and catch up on one another’s lives, and of course, spread gossip, if there was any.  This year, it was news that there was a handsome new man in town, and he wasn’t mated. 

 

Dean arrived at the town hall dressed in a black blazer and black dress pants, having chosen a deep garnet-colored dress shirt to pair with the suit, and he knew he was turning heads when he walked in the door.  He greeted everyone he saw, pausing to speak with a few before making his way towards the buffet table where Gabe was standing with his mate, Kali.  She was a vision in her red sequin gown, her long black hair cascading down over her bare shoulders.  He smiled warmly at the couple.

 

“Good to see you both here.”

 

“Good to see you here too.  Great turnout this year,”  Gabe said as he nodded towards the full room.  Almost every adult in town had come.

 

“I like seeing that.  If they’re here, they’re not out on the roads driving drunk or being stupid.  Garth’s on patrol tonight.  This is the dullest night of the year for him.”

 

“I’m sure.  You want some wine?”  Kali asked as she offered him a glass.  He declined and reached for a can of Coke instead. 

 

“So, did you hire a sitter or are the kids old enough to be home by themselves now?”  he asked.

 

“They’re old enough.  Jay was angry that we wouldn’t let him come this year, but we needed him to watch the younger pups,” she replied.

 

“He’s what, 13 now?”  Dean asked.

 

“He just turned 14 last week,”  Gabe replied.

 

“Wow, they’re getting big fast.  So that makes Alisha what, 12?  And Ira how old, nine?”

 

“Yes, she’s nine,” Gabe replied. 

 

“I have to come over more; they’re growing too fast,”  Dean said before taking a sip of his drink.  He looked out across the room.  Mostly people were standing around talking, but a few couples were dancing, like Mayor Fielding who was gracefully gliding across the dance floor with his wife, Mabel, and Dr. Bobby Singer, who was forever trying to woo Ellen Harvelle, the owner of the town’s only tavern, the Roadhouse.  At least he got her out on the floor to dance.  They looked adorable.  When he spotted a familiar head of red hair and the messy head of dark hair with her, he politely excused himself and made his way over.

 

“Hi,” he said, smiling softly.  Cas smiled shyly up at him.

 

“Hello, Dean.”

 

“Hey, gorgeous, you going to take me for a spin around the dance floor?”  Charlie asked.

 

“Where’s your girl?  Why isn’t she dancing with you?”  Dean didn’t see Charlie’s girlfriend, Gilda, anywhere.

 

“She just got off work and went home to take a shower first.  She’s meeting me here.  I want to dance, though.”  She grabbed the can of Coke from his hands and set it on the floor.  “You can have him next.” She winked at Cas before dragging Dean out onto the dance floor.

 

“What was that?”  Dean laughed as they began to dance.  Moonlight Sonata.  It was beautiful.

 

“He’s got a little crush on you, but seeing as how you keep looking over at him too, I think you’ve got a little crush on him too.  He’s adorable, and so very sweet.  I got him in to see Tess.  It’s helping.” 

 

“That’s good.  I want him to heal, for his sake, no one else’s.  Do…you think he’d dance with me?”  He wasn’t sure Cas would be agreeable, but it was just a dance, not a marriage proposal.

 

“I told him he needs to dance with you because you’re graceful.  It’s why I asked you, so I could show him how smooth you are, so glide me around the floor, hot stuff,” she teased.  He laughed and did exactly that, moving her around in a perfect waltz.  When the song ended, he returned her to her spot beside Cas.

 

“Where, um, did you learn to dance like that?”  Cas asked.

 

“My mother insisted on dance lessons when I was a pup.  I thought I’d hate them, but I didn’t, they actually taught me coordination and balance.”  Dean hesitated for only a moment as another song started.  He held his hand out, palm up.  “James Daniel Tredmont, may I have this dance?”

 

Cas blushed and glanced at Charlie, who nudged him and nodded towards the Alpha.  Slowly he placed his hand in Dean’s.

 

“I-I’d like that, but I can’t dance very well.”

 

“We’ll take it slow,”  Dean promised.  He guided Cas out onto the dance floor and after placing a hand on the Omega’s hip, they began to move.

 

“Just follow my lead.  It doesn’t matter if you make mistakes, we’re not being graded.  If you ever want to really learn, I’ll teach you.”

 

Cas smiled up at him, making his stomach flutter harder than he thought it ever had before.

 

“I only ever took waltzing as part of gym class in middle school.  It’s been a long time, but I did enjoy it.”

 

“I took it in middle school too.  Ended up dancing with the girl whose hands were always sticky.  It was really gross.  At the end of class I’d always have to go and wash my hands.  She left some kind of pink stain on my white tee shirt once.  I swear she was eating cotton candy between classes,”  Dean joked.  Cas laughed, and what a beautiful sound it was to hear him relaxing and opening up like that.

 

“That sounds like Gabe.  If his mate knew the sheer amount of sweets he ate, I think she’d have a stroke.  He has cups of sugar with a splash of coffee, and giant cinnamon rolls, every morning!”

 

“Wait, you guys don’t sell cinnamon rolls!”  Dean cried.

 

“I know!  He makes them and hoards them for himself!”

 

“No fair!”  Dean would have to tease Gabe about that later.

 

“How are you settling in otherwise? Do you like Woodhaven?”

 

“I do.  Everyone here is so very nice.  I hadn’t expected that.  I’m still learning names and faces, and who owns what business, but overall, everyone has been very welcoming,” Cas replied. He hadn’t even realized the song had changed and another one was playing.  Dean continued to move him gracefully around the dance floor.

 

“My brother and I, we were born here. So was my dad, so was my granddad.  My grandma was too.  My mom was from Lawrence, and my dad met her when he was passing through there with some friends.  Said he laid eyes on her and he wasn’t leaving without her.  Brought her home, they mated, I came nine months later.  She, uh, died when I was 12.  Was just my dad, Sam and me for a long time.  Dad lives still on the family farm; Sam’s got his own place with his family, and I have my own place now, so I guess it’s just me now.”

 

“I don’t think that in Woodhaven you’re ever really alone,”  Cas said.  Dean smiled.

 

“I think you’re right.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4~**

 

After that night, and feeling like he’d made even more of a connection with the gorgeous Omega, Dean seemed to be making more of an effort to stop in at the coffee shop every morning, and he talked to Cas at every opportunity, which really wasn’t nearly often enough.  He wasn’t sure what it was about the man that he liked, but he found himself wanting to be around him.  His work schedule and Cas’ naturally reclusive nature were not conducive to that, though.  So he settled for stopping in for his morning coffee, and hearing from Charlie or Bobby how he was doing. 

 

That was how he knew Cas’ sessions with Tess were going as well as they were.  It was a good start and very much needed, and while he was still staying with Charlie at her insistence, he was doing regular therapy for his trauma and talking about going back to school.  Ash was working on new identification papers for him, and Dean knew they’d be immaculate and untraceable once they were ready. 

 

It was the first week of January, on a bitterly cold Thursday, when Dean stopped in for his coffee.  The snow was coming down heavy, and he was freezing.  He wanted the biggest coffee they had, and one of the new hot egg sandwiches Gabe was offering.  Walking into the little shop, his eyes immediately went past Gabe and towards the back where Cas usually was, except there was another Omega working this morning.  Kevin smiled and nodded in greeting. Dean nodded back before turning to Gabe.

 

“Where’s Jimmy?”

 

“He, uh…”  Gabe scratched the back of his neck.  “Doesn’t work here anymore.”

 

“Did you fire him?”  Dean didn’t mean to sound demanding, but he worried about Cas. 

 

“No, no, he had to quit.”  Gabe thrummed his fingers on the counter.  “Maybe you should talk to Charlie.  Or better yet, talk to Jimmy personally.”

 

“I will.”  With coffee and sandwich forgotten, Dean stomped back out of the little café and climbed back into his car.

 

 

 

“Dean, oh, hey.”  Charlie seemed reluctant to open the door but she knew he wouldn’t budge unless she let him in, so she relented and he came into the little house.

 

“Where’s Jimmy?”

 

“Right here.”

 

Dean turned at the sound of the man’s deep voice, his worried expression softening as soon as he laid eyes on him.

 

“Are you ok?  Gabe said you quit.”

 

Cas nodded and took a few steps into the room.  As soon as he did, Dean could smell it on him. 

 

“Oh, C-”  He caught himself.  “Jimmy.”

 

“Please don’t.  This is hard enough.”  Cas wrapped his arms around himself tightly and stared at the floor. 

 

“Hey, I’m not looking negatively at you, ok?  In fact,” Dean eyed Charlie until she got the hint and left the room.  He walked over to where Cas was standing just outside the kitchen.  “I was hoping maybe you’d let me take you to dinner sometime.”

 

The shock on the Omega’s face when he looked up at Dean was also quite obvious in his scent.

 

“Dean, I’m…”  Cas winced and looked away, the shame written all over his face.  “ _Pregnant_.  I don’t even know what to _do._ ”

 

“Cas,”  Dean dropped his voice and moved closer so only the Omega would hear him.  “I’m afraid I’ll say the wrong thing and like, piss you off here, but the fact is, I like you.  I won’t like you any less based on whatever decision you decide to make about this.”

 

Cas fidgeted slightly before looking up at him.  Dean could see the skepticism in his eyes.  He was so much more beautiful now that he was of a healthy weight and all of his physical injuries had healed.

 

“I think…I need to talk to my therapist first.  I’m not sure dating is in my best interest right now.”

 

The words stung, but Dean didn’t let that show. He just smiled and nodded.

 

“That’s cool.  If not, we’re still friends, right?”

 

Cas returned the smile and nodded.  “Of course we are.  I just…I need some more time.”

 

“Do you think quitting Gabe’s was a good idea though?”

 

Cas’ smile fell away and he frowned.  “No, probably not, but I don’t want people looking at me strangely because I’m a pregnant, unmated Omega.  That tends to draw attention.  Unwanted attention.”

 

“You’re going to have to get around town, people are going to see you regardless.  Does that mean you want to keep the pup?” 

 

“I don’t know.  I had all these dreams, all these plans, and everything just…”  His voice hitched and Dean knew he was crying.  He gently tugged on the Omega’s arm until the man came willingly closer, and then he was wrapping Cas up in his arms. 

 

“You don’t have to give anything up.  Even if you decided to keep it.”  Dean spoke softly, laying his cheek against the top of Cas’ head where it rested on his shoulder. 

 

“That’s very difficult to do.  I can’t see that far ahead.  All I can see is the right here, and this is very frightening,”  Cas confessed.  Dean rubbed his back gently.

 

“Look, you have friends here, people who care about you, and whatever your decision, you have support.  You’re safe, you’re wanted, and you’re going to get the chance to fulfill your dreams. Charlie got to chase hers, and then some.  Ash got to go after his.  There are a few other people here that got to follow theirs, too, because they came here.  Trust me when I say you can go after anything you want here, ok?”

 

Cas took a step back and looked up at him.  His blue eyes were red rimmed, but he was smiling.  “You really think I could still become a teacher?  I-If I kept it?”

 

“I definitely do.”

 

“Thank you.  I needed that.”  Cas placed a hand against Dean’s chest and he wished he could feel the warmth of the Omega’s hand, but he was wearing a bulletproof vest under his shirt.  He settled for covering the man’s hand with his own.

 

“Think about my offer.  It still stands no matter the decision you make.  I would like to take you out to dinner.  I have to get out on the road, people drive stupid in this weather.  You should call Gabe, get back down there for your shift tomorrow.”

 

Cas sniffled and smiled.  “I’ll do that.”

 

Dean squeezed his hand gently before letting go.  He didn’t look back before he left.  If he did, he knew he’d want to stay.

 

“So…” Charlie asked as she crept back in the room.  Cas snorted as he wiped the tears from his eyes.

 

“What?”

 

“Why are you crying?”

 

“They’re happy tears.  He has a way of making me feel safe.”  He didn’t know what it was about the Alpha, but he was glad the man had come into his life when he had.

 

“What exactly did he say?”

 

“He made me feel like I might just be ok if I decide to keep it. Like I don’t have to decide between my happiness or the pup’s. I think I really needed to hear that.” He sighed and rubbed absently at his belly. “He also asked me out.”

 

“Holy shit!  No way!”  Charlie cried.

 

“Is that unusual?  Doesn’t Dean date?”  Cas was confused, both by her scent and her reaction.

 

“Sure, I guess.  He had an Omega, but they weren’t mated.  She had a pup, wasn’t his, but Dean was raising the boy like he was.  Loved that pup too, but his Omega wasn’t the faithful type, and she packed her son up a few years back and cut out on him.  Dean was heartbroken.  He didn’t date for a long time after that.  Then he started dating Benny,”

 

“Benny, from Benny’s Diner?”  Cas interrupted.  Charlie nodded.

 

“Yep, but Benny met a girl named Andrea, and I guess Benny fell in love.  It happened real fast.  Like one day he was walking through town with Dean, all happy and loving, the next Dean was at my house, crying his eyes out because Benny had gone and mated Andrea.  Broke Dean’s heart for a second time. They didn’t talk for a long time because of that.  There were a few other Omegas, but apparently they don’t know a good thing when they see it, and they kept leaving Dean for jerks, so he just sort of gave up.  He thinks he’s not good enough, so for him to take a chance and ask you out?  That’s big.  What did you say?”

 

Cas’ face fell as he remembered the hurt look that had briefly flashed across the Alpha’s face.  The one he was pretty sure Dean had been trying to hide from him.

 

“I said no.”

 

Charlie’s hopeful expression sobered and turned serious.  “Oh.  I suppose that makes sense.”

 

“I’m just…I’m not in a good place right now mentally, and I’m pregnant, and I just don’t know what to _do_ …”

 

“Hey, I understand, and I’m positive Dean understands too.  He didn’t go storming out the door right after you said no, right?  That’s a good sign.”  She patted his shoulder.  “I told you, Dean’s a good guy.”

 

“He is the best Alpha I think I’ve ever met.  He assured me that no matter what, we’re still friends, and that if I want to go back to school, I can, even with a pup, and that I don’t have to give up my happiness, or my dreams.  He also told me the offer still stands, if I decide later on that I’d like to accept his offer to go to dinner.  I told him I need to talk to my therapist first.  I really don’t remember any of what happened to me.  Whatever drugs they had me on, they were so strong I just remember a few brief moments of trying to get loose after they had first tied me up, and then waking up every night in my room, barely dressed, bleeding, and practically ravenous.  I don’t want to remember the mating.  Ever.  I’d rather just move on with my life, but at the same time, I can’t imagine settling here and finding a mate that if I opened up to them, they wouldn’t think I’m some sort of slut that let them do that to me.  I didn’t even live at the compound.  I lived alone at my family’s house after my mother moved to the compound.  My own brothers moved with her.  I went to school every day; I kept the house spotless, and I had limited contact with my mother.  She came by occasionally to check up on me and try to force more of her teachings down my throat, but I didn’t tolerate them as a child and I resisted them as an adult too.  Six sons, and I was the only Omega.  Six sons, and I was the only one that refused to bow to her demands and submit to her will. 

 

“I grew up with my father, but he developed a drinking problem when his writing career began to take a dive.  My parents split when I was six.  My father, being the Omega, he kept us pups after my mother left.  Looking back, I think he realized she was insane, and only getting worse.  They were mated, but he was doing what he felt was best for his pups.  My mother went on to take over a local church as the head minister.  We visited her on the weekends.  My eldest brothers, Mike and Luke, they’re twins.  They were 12 at the time, and they took everything she preached to heart.  Mike is now a fire and brimstone preacher for Morning Star.  Luke is my mother’s right hand, and does everything she asks. 

 

“My brother Bartholomew was the first to ask to leave.  He wanted to go live with mom, so at age 11, that’s what he did.  Mike and Luke went right after that.  I think they had just turned 13, which means I was seven.  That left myself, Inias and Daniel still at home with our father.  Inias was nine, and Daniel was ten. My mother tried to convince us that our father was unholy, that we were being mistreated, and that only she could show us the righteous path.  Even at that age, I sensed there was something seriously wrong with her.  Daniel moved in with her when he turned 15, and Inias followed a year later.  I resisted.  Someone needed to take care of my father, and he was so sick.  When I was 16, he died.  I had nowhere to go, except to live with my insane mother.  She wouldn’t let me go away to college when I turned 18. I was forced to attend a local college, and I had to be home and in bed every night.  I wasn’t allowed allowed to date or really have a social life at all.  She even sent people to check up on me.  It was suffocating and so controlling.  I had no idea what she was up to.  I just wanted to graduate and get the hell out of there.  I never, ever expected _this_ to happen.

 

“She’d been getting pretty irate with me over the last year because I wouldn’t give up my studies and come live at the compound.  She honestly thought she was going to select my Alpha for me, and force me to spit out as many pups as she saw fit, because she’s trying to create a ‘new world,’ according to what ‘God would want.’  It’s the craziest shit you could ever hear, even crazier than what you might hear in her public sermons.  I refused, so when I went into my heat…”  He shrugged and looked away.  That part he’d already told her in painful detail.  She grabbed him and hugged him tight, her calming Omega scent washing over him.

 

“They’re all monsters, and you’re safe here.  No one is ever going to hurt you here.  But you know, Dean knows your past, and he’s still interested.  Don’t count him out, ok?  Talk to Tess, see what she has to say, but I think moving on, reclaiming your life, and doing what makes _you_ happy is what’s in your best interest.” 

 

“Thank you.  I think you’re right, about Dean, but also about moving on.  I’ll be seeing Tess tomorrow and I’ll bring it up,” he said.  She gave him one last squeeze before letting go.

 

“How does hot chocolate with mini marshmallows sound?” 

 

He smiled warmly at his friend.  There had been no one in his life like her before he’d arrived in this town, and he was thankful to have met her.

 

“It sounds wonderful.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5~**

 

The first thing Dean smelled when he entered the bookstore was Cas’ apple and spice scent.  It was warm and inviting, even if the Omega himself still was trying to warm up to him.  The second thing he noticed was the harsher, lemony scent of another Omega who had been flirting for years now.  Unfortunately it was the second Omega that spotted him first.

 

“Dean Winchester, aren’t you just a tall drink of water,”  Pamela Barnes purred as she sidled right up to the shelf he had stopped to look at.

 

“Hey, Pam.”  He didn’t even bother looking, he knew she was undressing him with her eyes.

 

“How come you’ve never asked me out?”  she pouted.

 

Oh boy was _that_ ever a loaded question!

 

“Dean?”

 

He turned to see Cas standing a few feet away.  Much to his delight, the gorgeous Omega was shooting daggers at Pam.

 

“Jimmy!”  Dean squeezed past Pam and made his way over to where Cas was standing.  He smiled when he saw the books the man was holding.  They were meant for pups.

 

“What are you doing here?”  Cas asked.

 

“It’s my day off.  I’m allowed out of my house on my day off,”  Dean teased.  Cas blushed, but he was smiling. 

 

“Oh, I suppose you are.”

 

“Does this mean you’ve made a decision?” Dean tapped the small stack of books in Cas’ hand.

 

“I have.  It’s not my fault, and it’s not the pup’s fault, so we’ll do our best together. No one has to know how it came to be.”  Cas leaned in, dropping his voice to a whisper so only Dean would hear.

 

“I completely understand that, and I fully support you.”

 

Cas smiled brightly, and Dean wanted nothing more than to kiss him in that moment. 

 

“Dean, we were having a conversation.”  Pam was still standing by the bookcase, her hands on her hips and an irritated expression on her face.  She was now the one shooting daggers, at Cas.

 

“Sorry, he’s with me.”  Cas grabbed Dean’s arm and dragged him off towards the pup section, and the Alpha felt a moment of elation in the way Cas staked a momentary claim over him.

 

“I’m sorry, that was probably rude of me.”  Cas sucked his lower lip into his mouth and looked at Dean with such wide, guilty blue eyes that it became even more tempting for the Alpha to kiss him.

 

“It’s perfectly fine.  You saved me the very awkward explanation of why I have never asked her out.  She’s too flirtatious for me.  I-I can’t deal with another person cheating, and she did on her last Alpha. She doesn’t believe in mating.”  Dean looked away, refusing to dwell on the painful memories of his past.  This time the warm hand that came to rest on his chest, he did feel, and he looked down to see that Cas was right in front of him.

 

“I would like to take you up on that offer for dinner, if it still stands.”

 

Dean broke out in a smile so wide it made his entire face hurt, but he didn’t care.  “Yeah?  Ok, when are you available?”

 

“Is tonight too soon?”  Cas asked.

 

“Tonight is perfect. How would you like it if I cooked for you? Nothing fancy, but maybe burgers?  I just rented a couple of movies, and I was going to make that and watch them tonight. It would be nicer with company though.”  Dean’s hand found its way to Cas’ elbow where he rubbed it lightly through the flannel.  Cas smiled so sweetly it made his heart begin to race.

 

“I would like that.  Where do you live?”

 

“I’ll drive.  I’m about two miles out into the country, but with all this snow, people are still driving stupid.  We’ll eat, watch movies, and I’ll drive you back home.  We could even go now, but first, I’m looking for a couple of books.”  Dean hoped Cas would agree to that.

 

“Alright.  Just let me call Charlie and let her know I won’t be home until tonight.  She dropped me off here, and I need to let her know that she doesn’t have to come back and get me.”  Cas pulled out his phone while Dean went to quickly search for the books he’d come in for, before Pam could stop him again.  He found them and met Cas back up at the counter.

 

“What books were you looking for?”  Cas asked, reaching over to pick one up so he could read the spine.  He smiled when he saw it was on organic gardening.

 

“It’s a hobby,”  Dean said defensively.

 

“I think it’s wonderful.”  Cas was being honest.  Dean relaxed and smiled warmly at him.

 

“I bought a house pretty cheap, and it has some land.  I wanted to try my hand at gardening this spring.  The first couple of years I was busy trying to fix the house itself up.  I got the place dirt cheap because it was falling apart, but now it’s really nice.  I rewired all the electric, replaced all of the plumbing, put in new flooring, new drywall, and I completely remodeled the kitchen because I love to cook, but the old kitchen was still sitting in like, 1970.  It was hideous.  I’m talking red brick back splash, brown stove and fridge, matching vinyl floor, it was horrible.  I had the house appraised this summer, and I’ve raised the value over $75,000.  I don’t plan to sell it, but it’s nice knowing I made it look so good.” 

 

When they reached the register, Dean plucked the books from Cas’ hands and gave them all to the cashier, despite Cas’ protests.

 

“Consider this my first present.”  He smiled shyly at the Omega, who was practically beaming when Dean handed him the bag with his books.  His first purchase for his pup.

 

They drove to Dean’s house, chatting about whatever came to mind.  Mostly Cas talked rather excitedly about how Ash had gotten the new identification for him and with help from both Ash and Charlie, he was enrolled at the local college, his previously completed courses being added back in so that all he had to do was complete the last of the ones he’d been working on before his life had taken such a dramatic turn.

 

“So, this time next year you’ll be a teacher,”  Dean said. 

 

“Yes, and I’ll be able to afford everything my pup needs.  I’m looking forward to doing something nice for Charlie, for everything she has done for me.  She deserves it.”

 

“I told you she’s awesome.  Has she told you her story yet?”  Dean asked.

 

“She has.  It’s horrible.  I can’t believe the kinds of sick people that still exist in this world.  When you first pulled me over, I thought that was it, you’d call my mother, I’d get sent back, and I’d end up getting killed.  I figured I probably would have deserved it for some reason.  But you showed me an unexpected kindness I didn’t think Alphas were capable of.  The ones in my own family were not capable of it.  I thought staying here would be temporary, but then Charlie was so sweet and caring, just like you, and Bobby, as gruff as he is, I knew he cared, and then he cried…”  Cas shook his head, still marveling over that.  “I’d never seen an Alpha cry like that.  And Ash is so nice, and Gabe, and Kevin.  It feels like here, I’ve got a real home, and a real family.  The longer I stay, the less I want to leave.  So, I’ve talked to the elementary school, and Mrs. Grates is retiring next year. They want to offer me the position of 1st grade teacher, and I’m going to take it.”

 

Dean wanted to cheer, loudly, but he settled for grinning wide.  He reached over to take Cas’ hand and gave it a squeeze.  Maybe Cas would let him in, and they could really have something beautiful.  He really hoped so.

 

“So, this is my house,” he said as he turned into the driveway.  Cas’ blue eyes widened as he took it all in.

 

“It’s rustic.  I like it.”

 

“It needs new siding, and once it has new siding, it’ll go up about another $25,000.  Everything I’ve done so far is on the inside.  I’ll get around to re-siding it, maybe this summer.”  Dean hit the garage door opener and the door began to slide up.  He pulled inside and hit the button again.  They climbed out of the car, and he led Cas into the house through a door that led into a mud room.

 

“This is genius.  Too many houses have it lead directly into the kitchen, and the floors get nasty,”  Cas said as he shrugged off his boots and placed them on the mat under a bench that doubled as a coat rack.  He took off his coat while Dean sat down to untie his own boots.  They weren’t winter ones and didn’t slide off so easily.

 

“Yeah, that was something I liked about this house, but the linoleum in here was awful and half torn up.  I tore it all up, leveled the floor and laid down this white tile.  I think it looks nice.  Plus there’s a nice view out the window there of the front yard.”  Dean nodded towards the window tucked into the corner.

 

“You know how to fix a lot of things.  Where did you learn to do it all?”

 

“My dad, he’s a mechanic, but he’s always been a jack of all trades.  When my brother and I were growing up, we would work on all sorts of projects with him, from rewiring electric to putting up drywall.  I’ve even poured a concrete driveway once and rebuilt a roof after a tornado.  Not much I can’t do.”  Dean hung his own coat up and motioned for Cas to follow him into the kitchen.  He smirked at the way the Omega gasped.

 

“You did this yourself?”

 

“My dad and my brother helped, but yeah.  It’s nice, right?”

 

“It’s gorgeous!”  Cas ran his fingertips over the granite countertops and marveled over the glass backsplash.  Everything was done in shades of blue and green.  The appliances were stainless steel.  The room was stunning.

 

“I’m glad you like it.  I’m most comfortable in here.  Mostly I just have my dad, Ash, my brother, or Charlie over, but whoever comes over, I love cooking.  When the weather is decent, I grill.  I’ll grill, like, 90% of the year too.”  Dean headed to the fridge to get out the ground beef, and then began pulling spices from the mounted rack under the cabinet near the stove.

 

“I love grilled food.”  Cas said as he watched the Alpha gather the things he would need to make the burgers.  “Can I help?”

 

“I would normally say yes, but it’s not safe with you being pregnant.  But…”  Dean pulled a bag of potatoes out of a drawer and set them on the island.  He fished a cutting board out of another drawer and nodded towards the knife rack.  “How do homemade seasoned fries sound?  You cut, I’ll season?”

 

Cas nodded and stripped off his flannel, laying over a kitchen chair.  In just his tee shirt, Dean could see the very soft curve of the Omega’s bump as he found the knife he wanted to use.  After selecting the potatoes he wanted to cut and washing them, he got to slicing.  Soon the kitchen was filled with the delicious aroma of burgers and fries.

 

“What can junior there handle?  Do you want a soda with dinner or would you prefer water or tea?”  Dean asked a while later.

 

“I love tea; I drink a lot of it at Charlie’s.”

 

Dean opened a cabinet and Cas gaped at the sheer number of teas the Alpha had to choose from.

 

“So does my brother, and he brings new ones every time he comes over.  So pick one.  Stay away from the highly caffeinated ones, they’re bad for the pup’s lung development.”

 

“You know a lot about pups?”  Cas asked as he selected an orange spice tea.  Dean got the electric kettle started.

 

“Sort of.  My brother is mated with three pups, and I asked his mate, Eileen, a ton of questions, especially with the twins.  They came first.  A year later, they had another pup.  So, I have two nieces and a nephew.  Charlie was Eileen’s nurse and Bobby was attending physician for the birth of all the pups.  There’s only 367 people in this town, and everyone pretty much knows everyone.”

 

“May I ask, how old are you?”  Cas had been afraid to ask that.  Dean seemed so much more mature than him.

 

“I actually just turned 29 in January.”

 

“Twenty-nine…”  Cas echoed.  How on earth could Dean possibly be interested in him?  He was still practically just a pup himself! 

 

“You’re what, 21?”  Dean asked.  Cas frowned as he nodded.

 

“You’re very mature for your age.  That’s what I like.  My grandparents had 13 years between them.  And my grandmother was older.  She wanted a mature Alpha and there weren’t any around at that time, til my grandfather came along.  It was just before the war, and he took one look at her and he was smitten.  Promised he would come home, claim her, and they’d start a family.  She thought he was blowing smoke out his ears,”  Dean said.  Cas laughed, which made the Alpha smile.

 

“Anyway, he came home as in love as ever, and he set about courting her harder any other Alpha showing interest in her at that time.  He was 21, she was 34, but he was absolutely positive she was the Omega of his dreams.  They mated six months later and went on to have two pups, my dad and his sister.  They’re still mated to this day, and very much in love.”

 

“Really?”  Cas loved the idea of Dean’s grandparents still being so in love all these years later.

 

Since Dean had the burgers simmering covered, he left the room, returning a minute later with a large photo album in his hands.  He set it on the island and flipped to an old black and white portrait of a very handsome man with a beautiful woman in his arms.

 

“This was my grandfather Henry after he came home from the war, and this was my grandmother Millie.  My grandma wrote their ages at the bottom of the picture.”  Dean pointed that out.  He flipped farther through the book to a much more recent picture of a couple sitting together on a couch holding hands.  They were wrinkled, their hair was white, and they both were wearing glasses, but it was clear they were very much in love still.

 

“This was taken this summer.  They live in Florida now, in a retirement community.  My gramps, he was on the force here for 49 years, and my dad was too for 34.  Dad had to retire early, but he’s still in town, filling in from time to time as dispatch.  I’ve been on the force for eight years myself.”

 

“You think you’ll find your mate?  Here, in this town?”  Cas asked, looking up at him.  Dean smiled so warmly it made the Omega’s heart flutter.

 

“I’m positive.”

 

 

 

They took their meal into the living room, where Dean set up the first movie, and they sat back on the couch to eat and watch it.  Cas raved over the food.  So far, nothing had disagreed with him during this pregnancy, and he hoped nothing ever did.  When they were finished eating, Dean took their plates to the kitchen and returned with a blanket to throw over Cas as the Omega happily snuggled into his side.  The movie was good, and Dean was glad Cas wasn’t afraid of horror movies. They put in the second movie, and Dean fetched a second cup of tea for him. Halfway through, he had to show him where the bathroom was.  When he returned, they were back to cuddling on the couch, and when the movie ended, Cas was reluctant to leave.

 

“Did you only rent two?  It’s still early.”

 

Dean smiled, liking the fact that Cas didn’t want to leave.

 

“I have an entire movie collection.  Pick something.”

 

So Cas did, selecting a movie about World War II called The Book Thief, and happily curling up on the couch again with Dean.  He preferred to think about the things his father had taught him growing up, about how he’d know when the right Alpha came into his life, because that person would make him comfortable, and he’d feel safe.  That was how Dean made him feel.  He focused on that instead of his mother’s teachings about evil Alphas and their goal of corrupting innocent Omegas.  He was no longer innocent; she’d made sure of that.

 

Dean liked having Cas curled up against his side.  This might not be everyone’s idea of the perfect date, but Cas seemed happy, and when the movie ended, the Omega actually still seemed reluctant to leave. 

 

“What are you doing tomorrow?  You working?”  Dean ended up asking.

 

“No, Gabe has me working Monday through Friday, so I have the weekends off,”  Cas replied.

 

“Well, I’m off tomorrow too.  Would you like to get together again?  We can do whatever you want.”  Dean picked up the remote and turned the television off.  Cas lifted his head just enough to look up at him.

 

“Anything?”

 

“Sure.”

 

“I think I should start gauging the price of things I’ll be needing to buy.  Could you maybe take me shopping?” 

 

“Sure.  For the pup?”

 

“Actually, for school.  I need books, notebooks, a backpack, things like that.  I’ve been picking up clothes slowly at the thrift store in town, it’s all I can afford, but I will need school supplies,”  Cas explained.

 

“I have a backpack you can have.  Actually, come with me.”

 

Dean waited for Cas to stand up before he got up too.  He led Cas to the stairs that led to the second floor, and then to the pull for the attic. 

 

“You good to climb up?” he asked.  Cas nodded and followed the Alpha up into the attic.

 

“I put all my extra stuff up here, and I have a couple backpacks from my time in college.  Believe it or not, I went too.”  Dean chuckled as he checked various boxes until he found one with all of his old backpacks.  “I have a couple, plus Sam gave me his for whatever reason.  Hiking, maybe?  I don’t even remember.  But there are like, six in here to choose from.”

 

He stepped aside and let Cas fish through the box.  “Is your brother an Omega?”  He asked.

 

“No, Alpha, he’s just…in touch with his Omega side.”  Dean snorted when Cas fished out a neon pink backpack and cocked an eyebrow at it.

 

“That’s not something even an Omega would be interested in.  That hurts my eyes.”  He set it aside and pulled out a blue and gray one.  “I like this one, it has extra pockets.  Maybe it could double later as a diaper bag?”

 

“Oh, that’s a great idea!  You better take two bags then, one for the diaper bag and one for your school books.”  Dean reached around him into the box until he found a black backpack made from the same durable material as the blue and gray one.  “This is just like that one.”

 

“You’re sure?”  Cas asked.

 

“Positive.  I’ll check around, see what else I have around up here, or at my dad’s house to save you money for your pup.  I’ll even check with new moms and see where we can save you even more.  Pups grow fast.  I know Eileen has boxes of pup clothes in their attic.  I’ll ask her if she wouldn’t mind giving me some.  Your pup will have a full wardrobe before it ever gets here.”  Dean knew that Sam and Eileen would happily open their hearts up to Cas and give him everything they possibly could offer.  Cas felt the tears stinging his eyes again, and a moment later he was being wrapped up in strong arms once more.

 

“Thank you again, Dean, everything you’re doing for me, I can’t begin to tell you how much it means to me.  How much… _you_ mean to me.”

 

Dean’s heart soared as he hugged the man tighter.  “I’m crazy about you, Cas.  I’m not going anywhere, ok?”

 

“Ok.”  Cas hugged him back.  For once in his life, he truly did feel safe.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6~**

 

Dean dropped him off that night and was back the next morning to take him to get the supplies he needed.  Shopping didn’t take long, so when they were finished, they swung by John Winchester’s house, and Dean introduced Cas to his dad.  John was amiable, talking about his boys when they were pups, and about the town in general, and they were loaded up with freshly made cheesy garlic biscuits before they could leave.  Dean knew that later he’d have to tell his dad at least part of what was going on, especially since he could smell that Cas was pregnant, but for now, his dad knew well enough not to press the issue. 

 

They stopped in for hot cocoa at Gabe’s and then Dean offered to make dinner again.  Cas happily said yes.  They’d barely gotten back to the house and parked the car in the garage before a big truck was pulling into the driveway.

 

“Who’s that?”  Cas asked.

 

“That would be Sam, and possibly Eileen and the pups.  If it is, it’s the perfect opportunity to ask them for whatever stuff they have stored.”  Dean went to the front door and opened it.  It turned out to be the entire family, and he happily accepted his nephew when he was handed over.  Sam was carrying the twins while Eileen wielded two diaper bags.

 

“What brings you guys by?”  Dean asked.

 

“Thought we’d come see our favorite uncle,” Eileen said, then noticed Cas.  “We didn’t know you had company.”

 

Dean shifted his nephew to his left hip so he could free up his hand to try and sign as he talked.  “This is Jimmy.  We’re, uh, dating.”

 

“Nice to meet you, man.  I’d shake your hand, but I can’t release the terrors yet.”  Sam laughed and motioned towards the squirming pups in his arms.

 

“Hang on, let me get out the playpens.”  Dean went to the closet in the hall, and one at a time, brought in two playpens.  Eileen set them up and helped her husband undress the girls.

 

“Jimmy?”  Dean asked, indicating his nephew.

 

“Oh, of course.”  He hurried over to unsnap the pup’s hat and take his coat.

 

“This is Eddie, he’s three months old.  The girls are Michelle, or Ellie for short, and Lucy, they’re 16 months old.”  Dean wiped away the drool from his nephew’s chin and was gifted with a wide, happy smile in return.

 

“They’re beautiful.”  Cas smiled when the pup turned big brown eyes on him.  Eddie smiled back.

 

“Ok, _now_ I can shake your hand,”  Sam said, as he offered his hand.  Cas shook it firmly.

 

“It’s very nice to meet you, Dean speaks quite fondly of you both.” 

 

Sam’s nostrils flared and his eyes shot over to his brother who was laying Eddie down in the playpen.

 

“Dean?  Care to explain why Jimmy is pregnant?”

 

“It’s not what you think.”  Cas wrapped his arms around himself, but Dean was immediately at his side, an arm coming around his shoulders protectively.

 

“Sit down, Sammy, we need to talk.”

 

 

 

Dean opted to order pizza instead of cooking, and with Cas’ permission, he gave his brother and sister-in-law the abbreviated version of what had happened to the Omega.  It left Eileen in tears, and she got up from her chair to hug Cas tight.  Even Sam had tears in his eyes.

 

“That is…”  Sam let out a rush of air and tucked a lock of hair behind his ears.  “And they’re out there?  You’re sure?  Looking for you?”

 

“Yes, I’m sure of it.  You don’t ever leave their cult.  Not alive,”  Cas replied.  He surprised everyone by signing as he spoke.  It turned out his brother Daniel was deaf, and he’d grown up knowing sign language.

 

“I’m not letting them get at him, Sam.  We’re doing what we can to keep him safe.”  Dean still had an arm around Cas’ shoulders, and he pulled the man a little closer.  Cas went willingly.

 

“Where are you staying?”  Sam asked.

 

“I’ve been staying with Charlie since I arrived in town.  I was apparently in worse shape than I thought when I got here.  I…needed blood.  I was hemorrhaging a bit and had to have a minor procedure done to stop the bleeding.  I’m ok now, but it was pretty touch and go those first few days.  They were barely feeding me at the compound.  Apparently they had this warped idea that the Virgin Mary barely ate while carrying Jesus, therefore I didn’t need to eat very much, and that my child would be the messiah reborn.  So I was covered in bruises, gashes, was malnourished, and in the tail end of my heat when Dean pulled me over.  He could have arrested me and sent me back, but instead he protected me.  I am forever grateful to him, to Charlie, to Bobby, and to everyone else that has helped to keep me safe since I got here. I’m going back to school to finish my degree, and I have a job waiting at the elementary school next year.”  Cas couldn’t help but be excited about that. He wanted to look forward, not dwell on the past.

 

“This town is full of good people.  We help our own, and you’re one of ours now,”  Sam said.  Cas smiled softly as he leaned his head on Dean’s shoulder.  His smile widened when he felt the press of the Alpha’s lips against his hair.

 

“What do you need for your pup?  Do you know what you’re having?”  Eileen asked.

 

“No clue, and without going up to the hospital, I probably won’t know until it’s here. And I have nothing, except the books I was going to buy yesterday, that Dean bought for me.  And the bag he gave me to use as a diaper bag.”

 

“I have clothes!  And I can get you cloth diapers.  They’re so much cheaper than plastic.  I can give you a bassinet too!  Oh, and a baby swing, and…”

 

Eileen was rambling on, signing at lightning speed as she began listing all the things she was ready to hand over for Cas’ unborn pup.  It brought him to tears again.  So far, everyone he’d met here was so wonderful and caring.  This truly felt like home.

 

After Sam and Eileen took their pups home, Dean settled back on the couch with Cas half on top of him.  They were content with cuddling and talking, no movie needing to play in the background.

 

“They’re going to have a ton of stuff for you,”  Dean chuckled.

 

“I will appreciate it all, and use all of it.  I am unsure how to use a cloth diaper.  Hopefully Eileen can show me.”

 

“She’d be happy to, and she’ll spoil your pup.  She adores pups.  Her and Sammy met in high school, and at only 14, they knew they wanted to mate.  When they turned 18, that’s what they did.  Our dad was livid, but…he loves Eileen.  He just thought they were being rash.  And he adores his grandkids.  I know he could smell that you were pregnant earlier, and he was probably waiting for me to be all like ‘Surprise, Dad!  You’ve got another grandpup on the way!’ and he was irked when I didn’t say anything.  He’s texted me twice.  He’s been after me for a few years now to settle down, but I haven’t had the best of luck when it comes to love.  Either I choose Omegas that don’t know how to be faithful, or I choose the wrong ones for me, because they always leave me.”

 

“I’m not going anywhere, Dean.”  Cas moved up higher and laid his chin on his hands where they rested on the Alpha’s chest.

 

“You’re the first person I actually think _won’t_ leave me.  You’re so different from anyone else I’ve dated.  It’s a big reason why I put the offer on the table and sat back to wait.  I figured if you never said yes, I’d probably just not date anyone again.”

 

Cas lifted his head and stared down at him.  “You’re kidding.  You’re wonderful and thoughtful and incredibly attractive.  How could anyone _not_ want to be with you?  Are they stupid?”

 

“I don’t know; you’d have to ask them that.  No one ever gave me a real reason why.  They either just up and left without a reason, or they left me for someone else.”

 

Cas had been wondering almost since he’d met Dean what it would be like to kiss the man, but he’d been too shy to initiate it himself.  Until now.  The Alpha looked so broken, so lost and unwanted, and he never wanted him to feel that way.  A part of him was scared though.  Scared that the simple act of kissing would trigger some forgotten memory and bring that horrible, torturous time in his life roaring back, but Tess had told him, he couldn’t let the past control him.  This was his life, and he needed to be in control of it. 

 

So he crawled up the last few inches and pressed his lips to Dean’s.  It was clear the Alpha wasn’t expecting that, if the little squawk of surprise he let out was anything to go by, but then his hands were coming up to cup the Omega’s face as he leaned in to kiss him back.  Nothing bad came rushing to the forefront of his mind.  All Cas could concentrate on was how wonderful Dean smelled, and how good he tasted.  Anyone that didn’t want this man was an absolute idiot.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7~**

 

It was the second week in April, and the first week that the weather was decent, as Cas was walking from Charlie’s house to the café when he happened to glance in the diner window.  Benny was standing behind the counter and surprisingly, the diner was empty. Then again, it was midday.  Turning almost on autopilot, he marched into the diner and right up to the counter.

 

“Oh, hey, you’re the new guy in town.  Jimmy, right?”

 

“That’s right.  And you’re Benny,”  Cas said.  Benny smiled and nodded.

 

“That’s right.  What brings you in here?  You get a hankering for some of my gumbo instead of them fancy egg sandwiches?”

 

The thought of gumbo actually made Cas’ stomach rumble, despite having just eaten, but he was determined to stay on track.

 

“No, I have a question.  It might seem rather personal, but to me, it’s important.”

 

Benny’s smile fell away, and he cocked his head in curiosity.  “What kind of question might that be?”

 

“Why did you dump Dean for Andrea?  Why was she better than Dean?  What made you choose her over Dean?”

 

“Well, that’s three very personal questions, and I really don’t think they’re any of your business at all.”  Benny was no longer friendly, but Cas was a stubborn bastard.

 

“You see though, it _is_ my business.  I’m with Dean, and it breaks my heart knowing that he’s had his heart broken more than once before by selfish Omegas that didn’t take his feelings into consideration.  He has no clue why you just left him for Andrea. No one does, really. One day you were professing your love to Dean, the next you were dumping him and declaring your love for Andrea.  That tells me that, either you never loved Dean at all and were lying to him the entire time you were together, you’re a sociopath, or you were forced to leave him.  So, which is it?” 

 

Benny glared at him for a moment.  “You’re a right bastard, aren’t you?”

 

“So I’ve been told.”  Cas waited.  He wasn’t leaving without an answer.

 

“I…had an arranged mating that I tried to escape back in Louisiana.  I came up here, settled down, opened my little diner, and I was happy.  I met Dean after he was coming off being abandoned by that bitch Lisa.  He was beautiful and sweet, and the best damn Alpha I’d ever met.  I wanted him for my own, so…I went after him.  I wanted him to claim me, but my father tracked me down, brought along the Alpha I was supposed to mate with.  You see, her daddy paid my daddy, and if I didn’t go through with it, my daddy would either have to pay them back three fold, which, he doesn't _have_ that kind of money, and I didn’t have it to give him, or they were gonna kill him.  So I had to break up with Dean and that night, let Andrea claim me.  Trust me, she weren’t too happy with it at first either.  We’re good now, got a pup and all, but it was rough at first being in love with Dean, but mated to someone else.  I couldn’t tell him.  I couldn’t tell anyone.  Her daddy’s a very scary man.”

 

“Do you still love Dean?”

 

Benny’s smile was bittersweet.

 

“I care about him.  I suppose a part of me will always love him, but he’s better off without me.”  He nodded towards Cas’ stomach.  “Looks like he’s moved on anyway.  Tell him he best mate you, make an honest Omega out of ya soon.”

 

Cas thought about correcting him and saying it wasn’t Dean’s pup, but there was something thrilling about someone, especially one of Dean’s exes, thinking this was Dean’s pup growing in his belly.

 

“I’m sorry I barged in here like this.  I care so very much about him, and his self-esteem is so low.  I tell him I’m not leaving him, but only showing him that I’m here to stay will actually prove that.  You have a good afternoon.”  He gave a polite nod before heading back out into the brisk spring afternoon.  At least now he had an answer to the nagging question about why Benny had broken up with Dean so suddenly.

 

 

 

The months passed quickly, and Cas settled in nicely in Woodhaven.  He was doing well in his classes, he loved his job, and all of his prenatal exams were coming up with flying colors.  His pup was hitting all of the markers, and growing perfectly.  The best part of all was that he was growing more and more comfortable all the time with Dean, and for the first time in his life, he had an actual boyfriend.  He was in love, and he was happy. 

 

His pup was due in September, and by June Dean was begging him to move in with him.  Everyone, Sam, Charlie and Eileen included, all thought it was a great idea, and so he did.  It was scary, especially since he and the Alpha had not been intimate, but he trusted Dean in a way he didn’t really trust anyone, with the exception of maybe Charlie.  Dean wasn’t pushing and had said they could wait until the pup was a few months old, or until Cas felt ready, and if Cas never felt ready, he didn’t care, because he loved him too much to let him go, and that was how Cas knew Dean was the one he wanted as his mate.  So he decided, once the pup had arrived and he’d had the necessary time to heal, he’d mate with Dean and let the Alpha claim him.

 

Dean busied himself with setting up the nursery.  Cas was amazed with the care and dedication the Alpha was putting into it.  For a few months he’d harbored this fear that Dean would reject the pup because it wasn’t biologically his, but Sam had assured him more than a few times that his brother wasn’t that type of person.  He would shower the pup with so much love and affection, and raise it as if it were his own.  Cas would never have to worry that his pup would not be loved.  He believed Sam, and Dean proved it all the time.  He went with Cas to his doctor appointments, asked questions about the health of the pup, bought nutritious foods, paid for his prenatal vitamins, and set up the entire nursery himself. Every little action made him fall in love a little more with the Alpha.  This was his home now, and soon Dean would be his mate.  Sam, Eileen, Charlie, even Bobby all had become like family to him, more than his own had ever been to him.  He should have known not to get so comfortable and let his guard down though.  Things couldn’t stay that good forever.

 

 

 

Since Cas’ arrival, Woodhaven had become particularly wary of strangers, especially ones that felt a need to get nosey and look around.  They weren’t a tourist attraction, and they didn’t even have a motel within 50 miles.  Businesses within the town limits were meant for the townspeople to partake of, not so much outsiders.  Not that they weren’t polite to outsiders, because they were.  They just didn’t give them a reason to want to stick around.  Except they started seeing strange cars cruising through town with increasing frequency towards the end August.  Calls were flooding into the station about suspicious cars cruising down the streets, and people stopping into the diner, the café, into the stores, and even poking around backyards and peeking into windows.  Dean had a gut feeling they were looking for Cas, though how they could have possibly tracked him here, he had no idea.  But Ash did.

 

“The car, it was never reported as missing, right?  I bet they had a GPS tracker on it.  They weren’t worried about him getting away because they figured they could always get him back.  It was assumed he’d just take one of their cars, and they’re so paranoid they have tracking on all their cars.  That means that _I_ can track _them_.” 

 

So he did.  Turned out they had tracked the missing car down to Woodhaven, and then on down to where it had been dumped.  People were being nosey asking around about a pregnant Omega, except the people of Woodhaven didn’t snitch, especially to strangers.  Not even Benny, who wasn’t sure on what terms he and Cas even stood.  He was warily watching two men who had come into the diner one afternoon at the end of August.  The moment they’d pulled into his parking lot, he’d called Dean personally.  Now they were sitting at his counter, eating monte cristo sandwiches and watching him clean.  The one that reminded him of Cas spoke up finally.

 

“Have you seen this man?”

 

Benny turned around to see him holding out a picture.  He recognized Cas, and that alarmed him even more, but he was a champion poker player and didn’t even flinch.  Whoever these men were, they were bad news, and they weren’t here to congratulate Cas and Dean on their pup.

 

“Don’t think I have.  Should I?”

 

“It’s been rumored that he’s been in this area,” the blonde man said.  Now that was a bluff if Benny had ever heard one.  No one in these parts would say a damn thing to give Cas up. 

 

“I think you heard wrong, brother.  Ain’t no one round here like that.  We ain’t had no one new in this area in, oh, six years?  Save for you fellas.”  Benny refused to let the Alpha posturing intimidate him.  The bell over the door chimed and Dean walked in.  He looked at the strangers, sizing them up before taking a seat at the other end of the counter.

 

“What can I getcha?”  Benny asked him.

 

“Let me have some of your gumbo,”  Dean replied.  Once Benny had disappeared into the back, Dean turned in his seat, placing an elbow casually on the counter.

 

“Howdy, fellas.  You passing through?”

 

“You could say that.  Looking for something,” the blonde man replied rather tightly.

 

“Oh?  What did you lose?  Maybe I could help you find it.”  Dean tapped his badge if for no other reason than to be a smart ass.

 

“It’s fine, our brother, he ran off. We’re just trying to bring him home.”  The dark-haired man elbowed the blonde man.  Dean knew he was looking at the twins in that moment, Michael and Lucifer Novak, two of the men Cas was most scared of.  He made note of the matching short sleeve white button down shirts, black dress pants, and the gold crosses hanging around their necks.  Geez, they looked like they’d walked right out of the 1970s.

 

“Is he a minor?  Do you need me to put out an alert?”  He played dumb, not wanting to hint at the truth.  Mike frowned, glancing at his brother.

 

“No…”

 

“Then if he’s an adult, by _law_ you can’t make him go anywhere.  Besides, he ain’t here.  People don’t settle in Woodhaven.  They usually keep on going up the highway, to Lebanon, or even Kansas City.  We don’t even have a motel.”  Dean was trying to make a point.  He wanted them to _leave._

 

“Did you have a car towed here last winter?”  Luke asked.

 

Dean pretended to think for a moment while he tried to think of a good lie.

 

“We get cars towed that break down in the snow from time to time.  Or that get hit by semis.  It happens.  Care to be more specific?”

 

“Nissan Altima, Gold, 2014, Connecticut plates.”  Luke was getting irritated and Dean was glad.

 

“Nissan…Oh, maybe, but it wasn’t towed.  I think that’s the guy that fell asleep on the side of the road.  I found him, told him to move on.”

 

“Was this him?”  Mike was suddenly in front of him, thrusting a picture of Cas in his face.

 

“You honestly expect me to remember that?  I just told the guy to move on.”

 

“Why didn’t you ask for his license and registration?”  Mike demanded.  Dean bristled and sat up in his seat.

 

“People stop to rest on the side of the road all the time.  There’s a rest stop right off the highway, or did you not notice that?  Maybe I should be asking for yours.  This isn’t a town with crime.  We don’t have issues here.  Are you bringing issues?  What’re your names?”

 

Mike backed up to where his brother was now getting to his feet and tossing a couple of twenties on the counter.

 

“You most certainly won’t have any problems with us, officer,”  Luke said, and shoved his brother out the door.  Benny came back, the bowl of gumbo packaged neatly in a carryout container and clasped in his hands.

 

“Wasn’t sure if you really wanted this or not, so I made it to go.”

 

“Thanks.  How much do I owe ya?” Dean asked as he got to his feet.  He could see the car and the plates, and he called it in to Donna over at the station.

 

“They left enough to cover their food, yours, and two other people. Take this home to your Omega, he’s eating for two.”

 

“Thanks.”  Dean took the container after Benny slipped it into a bag.

 

“Why are they looking for Jimmy?” 

 

“They’re part of that Morning Star cult, and their mother used to torture Jimmy.  They want to bring him back and punish him for leaving because no one gets out alive.”  Dean looked at Benny, watching as the realization of what he’d just said dawned on him.

 

“Jesus!  You keep that boy safe, you here?  There’ve been people spotted with New England plates all over the county all month.  Every time I see a new one, or people stop in, I call the station.  I’ll be especially vigilant now that I know why they’re here.  Keep your man safe, Dean.” 

 

Dean nodded as he walked out the door and got into his car.  He pulled out his cell and shot off a text to Cas, who was safe at the house with Eileen and the pups.  She was keeping him company while he was at home the last few weeks before the pup was due, partially because he was already having contractions and was afraid to be alone, and partially because he knew cult members were driving around town looking for him and he was scared.

 

**Dean:**   Hey sweetheart.  How are you feeling?

 

**Cas:**   Very tired. My feet are swollen so Eileen made me elevate them. Ellie has been giving my belly kisses all afternoon, and Lucy is fascinated with watching the pup move. Oh, Eddie cut another tooth. On my knuckle. Ouch!

 

**Dean:**   I’m glad you’re doing ok.  Remember, keep the alarm set and the cameras on.  I set up trip wires with sensors too around the perimeter, and they will notify the police station immediately.  I’m keeping my baby safe.  And my pup.  Unfortunately I met two of your brothers today. Very unpleasant.  Especially Mike.  Tried to intimidate me.  Didn’t work.  They tried to bully Benny too.  I don’t like them.

 

**Cas:**   Be careful!  They’re all like that.  I have Eileen closing all of the blinds now, just in case.  I just got a text from Charlie that a woman with red hair was peeking in her windows.  I bet that’s Anna. I’m glad I don’t live there anymore.  She says someone came looking for me a few days ago but she played dumb and said she didn’t know anyone that fit my description, and that even if she did, if I’m an adult, there’s nothing they can legally do to make me go back.  They didn’t like that answer.  The woman apparently spit in Charlie’s face and called her a harlot.  It was not my mother though, because she wouldn’t do that, nor would she come for me herself. 

 

**Dean:**   I will be careful.  It won’t be safe for you to go into town til they’re all gone though.  We’re trying to get rid of them but it seems like every time we turn around, there’s another car showing up.  I made a promise, babe, and I plan to keep it. 

 

**Cas:**   I just heard a car door.  Someone’s outside!

 

That was the last text Dean received.  His heart was in his throat as he turned on his siren and raced towards his home.  His mate, his sister in law, and three tiny, innocent pups were alone there, and suddenly he felt extremely guilty for not telling his father or Jody the truth.  His father thought the pup was his and while had said they intended to mate after it was here, he really had no intention of ever telling his dad it wasn’t his.  He called Donna on his cell rather than over the mike, not wanting anyone with a CB radio to hear his call.

 

“Dean?  Why you calling me this way?”  she asked.

 

“Because those people you keep getting calls about?  They’re from the Morning Star cult out east, and they’re after Jimmy.  They could have CB radios and could be listening.” 

 

“Oh my gosh!” she gasped.

 

“Get all available units out to my house now.  Cas just texted me and said someone was outside. Did the tripwires alert the station?” he asked.

 

“They did, I already have Jody and Victor en route right now.  I’ll text Garth and get him on the roads looking for any suspicious cars. Oh, I hope Jimmy’s ok!”

 

“Eileen and the pups are there too.  Please, call my brother for me; I don’t have time,” he pleaded. 

 

“Ok,” she promised.

 

He hung up as his house came into view.  Jody’s car was already in the driveway, and he could hear Victor’s car coming up the road.  He barely threw the car in park before he was racing up the driveway and into the house.

 

“Jimmy!  Jimmy!”

 

“He’s not here, Dean.”  Jody called out from the living room.  Dean followed the sound of her voice and the screams of the pups to find Eileen sitting on the floor, a dish towel being held to her head.  She dropped it to sign to him.

 

_“They broke in, two men, one white man, dark hair, one black man, bald, and a white woman with red hair.  I managed to give Jimmy the ring you gave me.  With the tracker in it.  He shoved it on his finger.  Find him!  I couldn’t catch most of what they were saying except they were happy about the pup.  Jimmy punched the bald man and broke his nose.  That’s his blood.”_ She pointed to the blood on the floor in front of the couch and Dean told Jody what she’d said.  She then called in forensics.

 

“Someone want to explain to me why they’d kidnap your pregnant boyfriend?”  Jody asked, just as Victor came through the door.  With a frustrated whine, Dean gave them a quick synopsis.  He didn’t have time to dilly dally; he had to find Cas.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8~**

 

Cas touched the ring on his finger again.  He really hoped Ash could track it like Eileen said he could. It had been a gift from Dean to Eileen for her birthday a few years ago, when she’d gotten pregnant with the twins.  A safety measure in case she was ever out and got hurt or sick and they needed to track her and find her. She had apparently developed pre-eclampsia and had passed out at least once.  Dean, being the protective Alpha he was, and the good big brother to Sam that he’d always been, he’d bought the ring to give his little brother some peace of mind that his mate would be safe while he was at work.  Cas was incredibly grateful that she’d thought to hand him the ring before going to answer the door.  He’d hidden, at her command, but they’d found him in the closet and dragged him out kicking and screaming, but not before he got a few good punches in.  He’d been passed off to Mike and Luke, and was now sitting in the backseat of their car, being whisked back towards the compound, and back towards his own personal hell.  Luke had a gleeful sneer on his face the entire time, while Mike was more reserved.

 

“How could you think you could take the messiah away from us, Cas?  That was incredibly selfish of you.  You will be punished accordingly, just as the Virgin Mother was,”  Mike chastised softly.

 

“The Virgin Mother was _never_ punished!  What book are you even reading, you insane idiot!  And my pup is _not_ the messiah!  It’s a pup!  And its father is back in Woodhaven!  This is kidnapping!”

 

“Shut up!”  Luke snapped.  “You will go before mother and her punishment will be severe.  You will burn in a lake of fire, and _she_ will raise up the messiah to rule this world the way God intended!”

 

Cas hugged his belly and cringed back away from his brother.  Luke truly was insane!

 

“No!  She’s not touching my pup!  No one is!  Stop this car now!”

 

They both ignored him and when his protests continued, suddenly there was a gun thrust in his face.

 

“It’s bad enough you broke Uriel’s nose.  Shall I do the same to you?”  Mike asked.  Cas burst into tears.  He wanted Dean!

 

Up ahead the traffic slowed to a stop.

 

“What’s going on?”  Mike demanded.

 

“I don’t know. There can’t be this much traffic,”  Luke muttered. 

 

“Shit, it’s a roadblock!”  Mike exclaimed.

 

Cas took his brothers’ mutual distraction as an opportunity to try and escape, but they had put the child locks on.  Thankfully all of the beeping horns from the other cars had blocked out the sound of him trying to open the door.  The windows were open, though, so as Mike was looking out the passenger window, trying to look ahead towards the roadblock, Cas snuck his arm out the window and opened the door.

 

“Hey!”  Mike aimed the gun at him but Cas was out the door, waddling between the cars and screaming for help.

 

“Help!  Please help me!  I’ve been kidnapped!”

 

Luke jumped out to chase him down but he barely got a hand on his brother before he was tackled by police. Cas leaned against the car closest to him, clutching his belly and gasping for air.  A hand touched his arm and he screamed before he realized it was police and not one of his brothers.

 

“Are you Castiel Novak?”  she asked.  “Y-yes.”  He nodded, the tears suddenly spilling from his eyes.  She smiled and nodded at him as she spoke into her mike.  “Yes, Sir, we’ve got him.  He’s safe.”


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9~     

 

Mike and Luke had managed to get as far as North Carolina before they’d been caught, and Dean drove all the way out to pick Cas up.  There was much hugging and kissing, and before they went home, Cas had to go and give his statement at the nearest police station.  Thank God for Ash because he had tapped into the On Star on the car and called in to it so they recorded _everything_ Luke and Mike had threatened Cas with.  They’d both been arrested and much to Cas’ delight, a massive case was being brought against the Church of the Morning Star.  Naomi Novak was going down; she just didn’t know it yet.

 

After that, Dean took Cas home.  There was a drastic reduction in strange cars and when one did pop up, Dean checked them out personally.  Cas hadn’t been kidding about the cult not giving up that easily.  His _mother_ didn’t give up that easily.

 

Their pup was born the first Friday in September. The weather was warm, and Cas gave birth to a boy with platinum blonde hair and pale blue eyes even lighter than Cas’. He looked like he could be Dean’s, not that the Alpha cared. The moment he laid eyes on the tiny pup, he was in love.  Christopher James Winchester weighed 6 lbs. 6 oz. and was 19 in. long.  He was perfectly sweet, and Dean couldn’t get enough of him.  Cas laughed at how he almost had to wrestle the pup back from him.  John was proud to have another grandchild, and Charlie was thrilled to have another pup to spoil.  So was Eileen, who showered little Christopher with as much love as she did her own children.

 

It turned out life with Dean was just about perfect.  Mating with him was wonderful, and he watched the last of the self-doubt the Alpha harbored disappear the night they bonded for life.  Dean knew without a doubt that Cas wanted him, utterly and completely, for the rest of their lives, and Cas knew Dean wanted him too.  They went on fixing the house up, creating a wonderful organic garden, and raising their pup to be big and strong.  Two years after they mated, Christopher gained a little sister, Shelby, after Cas vetoed Dean naming the pup Impala.  Two years after that, Amy was born.  Despite the ongoing case against the cult church and the fact that her top two sons were in prison for kidnapping and attempted murder of her youngest son, Naomi’s church was still going strong, and every once in a while some of her weirdos would show up in town.  If they spotted Christopher, they would immediately drop to their knees as if worshiping the boy, which frightened him and angered Dean.  Every time he caught them doing it, he would escort them out of town and threaten them with arrest if they returned.  Then Naomi showed up herself.

 

It was the year Chris turned six.  They were hosting a party at the park in town, and all of his friends, his cousins, and of course his siblings had been invited.  The way Woodhaven usually did summer parties was, if it was at the park, you were welcome to stop on by and say hello, so people were coming and going, dropping off gifts or just stopping to wish him a happy birthday.  Chris was having a blast playing with Eddie on the slide under Sam’s supervision while Dean was trying to cut one of the three cakes Gabe had been gracious enough to make for the occasion.  Cas was busy wiping frosting from Amy’s face, so they hadn’t noticed the woman in the long, flowing gold dress come striding into the park, even though she looked sorely out of place on such a warm summer day.  Jody noticed her first, but it was Victor that recognized her.

 

“Hey!  You are _not_ welcome here!”

 

Dean and Cas both turned to see who he could possibly be saying that to, and upon spotting his mother, Cas grabbed Amy and ran to grab Shelby who was swinging with Lucy and Ellie.  Sam grabbed Eddie and Chris.

 

“I have a right to see my grandson.”  Naomi stopped near where Dean stood, knife still in hand after cutting the cake.

 

“What, and not acknowledge your other grandchildren?  That’s pretty shitty, lady,”  Gabe snapped.  Naomi leveled him with icy glare, but the Beta didn’t budge.  Everyone here knew who she was, and no one was letting her intimidate them.

 

“Christopher, darling, come to grandma!” she called out sweetly.

 

“What part of you are not welcome here are you not comprehending?  You need to leave now, or I will have you arrested.  You’re interrupting a private gathering,” Dean warned. 

 

“And who are you to threaten me?”  she snapped.

 

“Christopher’s _father_.”  He snapped right back.

 

“Impossible!”

 

“Oh lady, your little shit show of torture didn’t work.  He came here, hooked up with me, and Chris is _my_ kid. Hate to break it to you.” He clicked his tongue and offered up his most condescending smile. “You tried to have your son kidnapped just to steal _my_ pup. You’re not the hand of God.  You’re not even the hand of Satan. Pretty sure even he’s not as evil as you are.”

 

She gaped at him for a moment before looking out across the park towards where Chris was sitting with Cas.  There was no doubting how much he looked like Dean.  As he got older his hair had even been darkening and he had a smattering of freckles across his nose and cheeks.  His blue eyes had eventually darkened and were now more like Sam’s, a greenish hazel.  Mostly to look at him though, he looked like Cas.  Personality wise, he was very much like Dean.

 

“But…”

 

“Your God would not give a woman like you the messiah. Not when she tries to force it through _rape._   Speaking of…”  Dean pulled a pair of handcuffs out of his back pocket and snapped one onto Naomi’s wrist.

 

“Naomi Novak, you are under arrest…”

 

There was no feeling more satisfying in the world than the snap of his cuffs in that moment, or the look of absolute relief on his mate’s face.  They would be ok.  Their pups would be ok.  Life would go on.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. Kudos and comments are always welcome.
> 
> EDITING TO ADD, AO3 IS ACTING UP AND WON'T LET ME MARK IT AS COMPLETE. THERE ARE ONLY 9 CHAPTERS, AND THERE WILL NOT BE ANY MORE WRITTEN FOR THIS VERSE. HOPEFULLY THIS WILL EVENTUALLY CORRECT ITSELF.


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